🚀 go-pugleaf

From Matthew Gaylor <freematt@aol.com>

Letter to the Editor as it appears in the April 18th Issue of The Columbus
Dispatch.


FEDERAL KEY TO COMPUTERS WOULD VIOLATE PRIVACY

 Upon reading "Congress logs on to settle computer security battle" (Dispatch,
April 6), I wondered why this article wasn't on the front page.  The Clipper
chip program, which was developed in secret by federal agencies chiefly
concerned about electronic eavesdropping, is one of the most under reported
privacy issues of 1994.
   The current proposal, aspects of which remain classified in the interests of
national security, will allow our governmental bureaucracies to hold the
encryption keys to all of our electronic data and telephone services. The
Government claims this is necessary for them to combat terrorism and other
threats. The Government further claims that they would never violate our
privacy and only gain access to our communications when a proper warrant had
been obtained.
   To me this is very frightening, this proposal would be like the police
requiring that every homeowner give them their keys and the password to any
alarms in the off chance that they needed to search their home.  How many of us
would feel comfortable in knowing that the police could search our homes at
whim?  Do we really believe that the CIA, FBI and NSA would never violate our
fourth amendment rights with the clipper program?  I think that they would in a
heartbeat.

                                        Sincerely,
                                        

                                        Matthew Gaylor